# Malleable Software of Past Decades

For the past months, I've been reading a lot about malleable software and
end-user programming.

You can find the best summary I know of at [Goeffrey Litt's blog][geoffrey].

[geoffrey]:
  https://www.geoffreylitt.com/2023/03/25/llm-end-user-programming.html

In my day job, I work a lot on design systems and user interfaces. I've always
been interested in design and user experience. Recent advances in AI, which
enable every slightly technical person<sup>\*</sup> to build software, make this
time especially interesting.

<aside>
  (*) My mom, a 64yo small-town dentist, won't have a lot of success with GPT-4.
  Most corporate white collars will probably be able to build fairly complex
  tools for themselves.
</aside>

I'm writing this to make a prediction: The best and most widely used consumer
software will be **malleable** in the coming decade.

## Eternal reinvention

<figure>

> Whatever is has already been, and what will be has been before

<figcaption>

Ecclesiastes 3:15

</figcaption>
</figure>

Remember how Elon Musk invented [the subway][elon-invent] and Zuck invented
[MMORPG][mark-invent]?

[elon-invent]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperloop
[mark-invent]:
  https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/09/technology/meta-zuckerberg-metaverse.html

We tend to come up with what we have previously explored in the past. It's fine,
we improve, iterate and expand on what was before. Well, that's if we're aware
that some version of what we're working on already existed. We could also choose
to be oblivious, repeat mistakes, and miss the good things.

<div class="flex justify-center">
  <Image
    width={220}
    aspectRatio={0.4585300067}
    src="/malleable-apps/i-made-this.webp"
    alt="A meme showing a person claiming they invented something that was before. See https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/i-made-this."
  />
</div>

We already have malleable apps, and they are _loved_ by their users. Let's think
what can we learn from the past.

I'm not talking about Excel and Notion. Yes, those are nice. I like them. Pretty
excited about Microsoft Loop too, but it's not what I mean. You might have
already guessed, but let me first entertain you with a bit of a personal
backstory.

## What has been

Twenty years ago, when I was in primary school, all the boys played video games.
Games were expensive, and consoles were even more expensive, so we played the
free stuff like [browser strategy games](https://www.tribalwars.us/) and
[Korean MMORPGs](https://gameforge.com/en-US/play/metin2).

Those online games have built communities around them. We talked about them at
school. But there's a community-building stronger feature than being online,
that I encountered a few years after, probably around 2008.

The games that still sell copies after more than a decade, the games that people
really fell in love with, those games have [**mod support**][mod-support].

[mod-support]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_game_modding

Nowadays, many triple-A PC games are designed with modding support from the
get-go. It's no surprise because the mods extend the shelf life of the game
drastically.

We can find an example in the world of developer tools. The main disadvantage of
[Zed](https://zed.dev/) in its competition with VSCode is VSCode's rich
extension ecosystem and low entry barrier to publishing extensions. Even when
your new software reaches feature parity with the incumbent, your extension
ecosystem will need to be competitive. It would be ideal, if it was compatible
with the extensions of the competition, or provided a compat layer. I probably
wouldn't start using Arc if it wasn't based on Chromium, and it didn't support
all extensions I was already using.

Video games, browsers, IDEs and "workspaces" like Slack and Notion are built for
audiences with a large share of nerds and power users. Among those nerds, some
are willing to go the extra mile to customize the software they're using and
share their work with others.

Until this moment, social media apps, music players and direct messenger apps
were not extensible. People who needed, or wanted to customize them had to use
browser extensions for that (e.g. dark mode for Facebook, YouTube downloaders).

With more people empowered to write code through LLMs, I expect a surge in the
need to customize apps. In each of us, there's a need for expression and
personalization.

## What will be

I expect that even if end users will be able to edit the apps they're using in
real time, the most popular modifications will be created by power users. It
requires time and dedication to build something polished, regardless of the
tools and the medium.

Apart from the joy of building and making something truly yours, would the
extension creators of the future seek some other gratification?

Let's consider the three levels of video game mod success. Successful mods have
historically:

1. Gained popularity, acclaim, and sponsorship on Patreon.

2. Got merged into mainline, like DrZhark's
   [Mo'Creatures](https://mocreatures.fandom.com/wiki/Mo%27_Creatures_Wiki)
   which helped introduce horses to Minecraft.

3. Became a standalone game like
   [Garry's Mod](https://store.steampowered.com/app/4000/Garrys_Mod/), and
   [DOTA 2](https://www.dota2.com/home).

If we add the Freemium business model popular in browser extensions to the
equation, I think we can expect a new generation of indie hackers and a new wave
of personalized niche software.

I'm keeping tabs on this space, and working on some toy projects. Thanks for
your attention. Cheers.

{/* Prophesy of Pendor */}
{/* https://forums.taleworlds.com/index.php?threads/prophesy-of-pendor-v1-21-introduction-and-release-for-m-b-1-010-1-011.53027 */}
{/* The first game I've fallen in love with was Neverwinter Nights 2. */}
{/* The first game I played was "Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2". */}